Democratic and Republican congressional leaders are rushing to offer unalloyed support for Israel's offensive against Hezbollah fighters, reflecting a bipartisan desire to not only defend a key U.S. ally but also solidify long-term backing of Jewish voters and political donors in the United States, according to officials and strategists in both parties.

With Israel intensifying its air and artillery attacks on Lebanon and warning of a protracted war, the Senate yesterday unanimously passed a bipartisan resolution endorsing Israel's military campaign and condemning Hezbollah and its two backers, Iran and Syria. A few hours earlier, Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) delivered his most strident defense of Israel since the conflict erupted a week ago. The House is expected to pass a similarly pro-Israel resolution today.

At the same time, several candidates in highly competitive races are touting their unequivocal backing of Israel. Rep. E. Clay Shaw Jr. (R-Fla.), who faces a tough reelection race against a Jewish Democrat, introduced his own resolution charging that "both Syria and Iran are directly responsible for this act of terrorism and should be held accountable." In Minnesota, Rep. Mark Kennedy, the Republican Senate candidate, is criticizing what his campaign calls Democratic candidate Amy Klobuchar's "deafening silence" on the conflict, calling her a "timid soul." Klobuchar, however, has staked out a similarly pro-Israel position.

Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman punctuated the day with a speech to Christians United for Israel last night, declaring that "today, we are all Israelis."Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, support for Israel has only intensified among politicians and the public, lawmakers say and polls confirm. The Jewish state is frequently praised as a vibrant democracy and trusted U.S. ally, one that has suffered greatly from terrorism.

Israel is also the largest recipient of U.S. foreign aid, and benefits from a widespread perception that it is smart politics to embrace Israel, according to Democratic and Republican officials and strategists.

But some U.S. officials worry that the political calculation is undermining efforts to find a peaceful solution to the latest conflict. "There is no danger for the candidates," said Rep. James P. Moran Jr. (D-Va.), adding that those politicians "will get rewarded politically and financially for being out front in their support."

Moran said, however, that the outpouring of political support could prove dangerous for Israel. That's because Israeli officials "know they can only go as far as the United States backs them," and the flurry of pro-Israel activity "can encourage their leadership to overreach and create situations that become more problematic," he said.

Moran was forced to apologize three years ago for blaming U.S. Jews for pushing the country into the Iraq war.

Moran holds a minority view in Congress. Many Democrats, who are among the largest recipients of Jewish votes and money in federal elections, are working with Republicans to pressure President Bush to reject calls to strike a more measured tone and prod Israel to show greater restraint."I don't think [Republican politicians] made any of their decisions in this crisis or previous ones based on politics," said Matthew Brooks, executive director of the Republican Jewish Coalition, which is running newspaper ads in Jewish newspapers praising Bush for backing Israel. "However, there is certainly a collateral [political] benefit" of speaking out early and forcefully.

Anna Greenberg, a Democratic pollster, said lawmakers in both parties "believe there are very important groups in American politics that care about Israel, and that includes the Christian right and Jewish groups," she said. Based on her research and experience, however, Greenberg said Jewish voters are motivated as much by domestic issues such as separation of church and state as by a candidate's passion for Israel.

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If you prick us, do we not bleed? if you tickle us, do we not laugh? if you poison us, do we not die? and if you wrong us, shall we not revenge? m.of v. w.shaka speare

St Petersburg - United States President George W Bush repeated on Sunday that Israel had the right to defend itself in the Middle East, and did not back Lebanese calls for an immediate ceasefire.

"Our message to Israel is defend yourself but be mindful of the consequences, so we are urging restraint," said Bush.

Bush has refused to call on Israel to halt its offensive on Lebanon to punish Hizbollah guerrilla attacks across its border.

Speaking after bilateral talks with British Prime Minister Tony Blair at a Group of Eight summit, Bush made the comment in reply to a reporter's question about a Lebanese proposal for an immediate ceasefire.

Referring to an upcoming discussion on the Middle East by G8 leaders, Bush said: "I think most leaders are beginning to recognise the root cause of the problem."

Bush has blamed Hizbollah for the recent upsurge in violence.

Blair told reporters it was essential to calm the situation and G8 leaders would work hard for "a common and unified position".

"The only way we are going to get this situation calm and we are going to get a cessation of hostilities is if we address the reasons why the situation has arisen," he said.

one of my favorite quotes...

03/15/2005

PRESIDENT BUSH: Well, first, I look forward to listening to the Patriarch. It's going to be a very interesting discussion. One of the messages I want to say is that my meeting with the Patriarch is in no way embracing any religion for Lebanon; it is a way for me to speak to people that believe the Lebanese society ought to be free. We view Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, and I would hope that Hezbollah would prove that they're not by laying down arms and not threatening peace. One of our concerns The Majesty and I discussed is that Hezbollah may try to derail the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians. And it's very important that this peace process go forward, for the sake of the Palestinians, for the sake of the Israelis, and for the sake of all the people in the region. But Hezbollah has been declared a terrorist organization by the United States because of terrorist activities in the past.

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If you prick us, do we not bleed? if you tickle us, do we not laugh? if you poison us, do we not die? and if you wrong us, shall we not revenge? m.of v. w.shaka speare

some sunni's are "crescenting guerrillas" too, fool...do you do any research?decimating the "crescenting" hezb-allah guerrillas will further the resolve of mr. bush and his legacy is carving it's way through mesopoetamia and the fertile crescent...

crescentors like the crusaders will be annihilated.

do you support the israeli's actions?

in your next post you MUST answer this question or it will be clear that you have no spine nor backbone?

careful: this will determine some irony ...make it count.

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If you prick us, do we not bleed? if you tickle us, do we not laugh? if you poison us, do we not die? and if you wrong us, shall we not revenge? m.of v. w.shaka speare